Is it the position of the El Paso Texas Diocese that Pope Pius X's Catechism and the Catechism of the Catholic Church are wrong in calling sodomy a sin that cries to God for vengeance?

Rev. Michael Rodriguez, pastor of Saint Juan Bautista Church in Central El Paso, has written a series of advertisements published in four parts by the El Paso Times.  These advertisements, entitled "The truth about homosexuality," denounce homosexuality and any encouragement of homosexuality.  Sounds like something any serious Catholic would fall behind right?  Unfortunately, the Diocese of El Paso insists that the advertisements do not represent the teachings of the Roman Catholic Church and that, "These paid advertisements are the personal views and opinions of Father Michael Rodriguez."  Readers of this Blog will recall that the Bishop of El Paso, Armando Ochoa, referred to Catholic teaching regarding same-sex "marriage" as "mere opinion."

In his 1910 Catechism, Pope Saint Pius X tells us that sodomy ranks second in gravity to voluntary homicide among the sins that "cry out to God for vengeance."  According to this Catechism, crafted by one of the greatest Popes of the modern era - the Pope of the Eucharist, raised to the altars of the Church - "These sins are said to cry out to God because the Holy Spirit says so and because their iniquity is so grave and manifest that it provokes God to punish with more severe chastisements."

But officials of the El Paso Diocese apparently believe that the Holy Spirit is wrong and that Pope Pius X's Catechism is mistaken.  If this is the case, then the diocese must also reject this authoritative teaching of the Catechism of the Catholic Church promulgated by His Holiness Pope John Paul II: "The catechetical tradition also recalls that there are 'sins that cry to heaven': the blood of Abel, the sin of the Sodomites, the cry of the people oppressed in Egypt, the cry of the foreigner, the widow, and the orphan, injustice to the wage earner.'" (CCC, 1867).

The Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, in its document entitled Considerations Regarding Proposals to Give Legal Recognition to Unions Between Homosexual Persons, insisted that:

"If it is true that all Catholics are obliged to oppose the legalization of homosexual unions, Catholic politicians are obliged to do so in a particular way, in keeping with their responsibility as politicians....The Catholic lawmaker has a moral duty to express his opposition clearly and publicly and to vote against it.  To vote in favor of a law so harmful to the common good is gravely immoral." (No. 10).  The CDF also emphasizes in this important document that, "The Church teaches that respect for homosexual persons cannot lead in any way to approval of homosexual behavior or to considerations of homosexual unions." (No. 11).

It would appear that the Diocese of El Paso needs to be investigated by Rome.